Shoe-rack.



5.. c. BEAUMONT.

SHOE RACK.

APPLICATION FILED NOV. I7, I9I3.

Patented Sept. 19, 1916.

. WVf/I/TUR UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

ERNEST C. BEAUMONT, OF REVERE, MASSACHUSETTS, .ASSIGNOR TO UNITED SHOE MACHINERY COMPANY, OF PATERSON, NEW JERSEY, A CORPORATION OF NEW JERSEY.

SHOE-RACK.

Patented Sept. 19, 1916.

Application filed November 17, 1913. Serial No. 801,442.

1 b all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, ERNEST C. BEAUMONT, a citizen of the United States, residing at Revere, in the county of Suffolk and State of Massachusetts, have invented certain Improvements in Shoe-Racks, of which the following description, in connection with the accompanying drawings, is a specification, like reference characters on the drawings indicating like parts in the several figures.

This invention relates to racks such as are used in shoe factories for supporting the shoes in the intervals between successive operations thereon and for transporting them from one part of the factory to another during the process of their manufacture.

Up to a certain stage in shoe manufacturing operations, which differs with different types of shoes and with the practices of different makers, it is advantageous to support the shoes in inverted position on the racks with their bottoms uppermost, and it is preferable subsequently to place them in upright position. This has usually necessitated heretofore the use of differently shaped racks for the earlier and the later stages re spectively of the process of manufacture, thus requiring much additional floor space in the factory and adding materially to the cost of equipment. Although constructions have been proposed embodying means for supporting the shoes in either upright or inverted position, such structures have usually been provided with separate difierently shaped shelves or supports corresponding respectively to the different positions of the shoes, therebypractically doubling the size of the rack in proportion to the number of shoes accommodated at any one time, or have failed to hold the shoes securely in position, have had a tendency to accumulate tacks and waste matter to the injury of the surface finish of the shoes, have been unduly complicated, or have been open to other serious practical objections such that they have never come into extensive use.

This invention has in view the provision of av shoe supporting rack of simple and inexpensive construction upon which the shoes may be placed in either upright or inverted position without change or adjustment of its parts, which will accommodate substantially as many, if not more, shoes, in proportion to the size of the rack as prior racks which have been designed to support the shoes in a single position only, will hold the shoes securely and keep them effectively separated from one another in either of their posltions, and will avoid practically all tendency to mar or soil the shoes through contact with accumulated waste or with the rack.

To the above ends, features of the invention reside in the provision of novel means i for supporting a shoe in either upright or inverted position in substantially the same location on the rack. With this means shoes may be supported in either position on a rack no larger than would be necessary for tion is located toward the front of the rack, I

and when placed upright it is reversed end for end, so that the means which serves to support the rear portion of the shoe in inverted position sustains the forepart when the shoe is placed upright. For supporting the forepart of the shoe in inverted position a rest is provided, and this rest preferably serves through contact with the heel to limit forward movement of the upright shoe on the rack, further means being provided preferably for limiting the rearward movement of the upright shoe. The supports for a plurality of shoes are arranged in series in the usual manner, and the invention includes the provision of means for keeping adjacent shoes apart when they are in their upright position. I

These and other features of the invention including certain details of construction and combinations of parts will now be described with reference to the accompanying drawings and pointed out in the claims.

In the drawings, Figure l is a view in front elevation of apreferred form of rack embodying the present invention, with an intermediate longitudinal section of the rack broken away, Fig. 2 is a perspective view of a portion of one of the shelves of the rack showing the manner of supporting the shoes in either upright or inverted position, and Fig. 8 is a sectional detail illustrating a modification.

The rack as a whole comprises a skeleton framework, including uprights 2 at the front and rear corners to which are secured any suitable number of individual shelves or rack members for supporting the shoes. Each of these shelves comprises end pieces or supporting bars 4; and a bar 6 extending longitudinally of the rack at the rear of the shelf.

Substantially parallel to the bar 6 is a member 8 which is secured to the end pieces ft and is suitably shaped and located to provide rest for the foreparts of the shoes when the latter are placed in inverted position as indicated at 10 on Fig. 2. The member 8 is suitably spaced from the bar 6 to prevent the toe portions of the shoes from contacting readily with said bar when the shoes are inverted, and to provide sufficient space between the members 6 and 8 to receive the heels of the shoes when the shoes are placed upright as indicated at 12. The rest 8 is suitably hollowed out, as shown at H, to receive the foreparts of the uppers. This hollowed portion of the rest assists, as will be evident, in preventing lateral movement of the inverted shoe, and this construction also practically avoids all tendency for injurious contact between the shank of the shoe and the member 8 when the shoe is placed in upright position.

In addition to the rest for the forepart, the shoe supports comprise rods or dowels 16 seated in the bar 6 and extending forwardly through holes bored in the member 8. These rods converge toward their forward ends and are preferably inclined somewhat in an upward direction toward the front of the rack, thereby serving to receive the rear portion of the inverted shoe and to prevent the shoe from working outwardly on the support during movement of the rack from one part of the factory to another. The forward ends of the rods are preferably spaced far enough apart to receive the rear portion of the shoe without making it necessary to place the shoe upon the support by inserting it from above, while, at the same time, the rods converge sufiiciently at their outer ends to support the forepart of the sole of the shoe when the shoe is placed upright as shown at 12.

That portion of the rods 16 which is located in the space between the members 6 and 8 is intended to serve, in the form of the invention shown in Figs. 1 and 2, as supporting means for the heel of the upright shoe. The heel supporting means includes preferably also other rods or dowels 18 extending between the members 6 and 8 and suitably spaced between the rods 16 to provide a stable support for the heel and prevent the shoe from tipping easily to one side or the other during movement of the rack. The rods 18 are conveniently made somewhat smaller in diameter than the rods 16, and this construction is preferable in order to prevent undue weakening of the supports 6 and 8 through the boring of holes in which the rods are seated. The upper surfaces of the rods 16 and 18 in the form of the invention shown in Figs. 1 and 2 are substantially in the same plane so that the heel of the shoe may rest evenly in upright position upon any portion of the supporting means.

It will be understood that the depth of the hollows 14 in the rest member 8 is suitably proportioned not only to serve the purposes previously pointed out but also to prevent the toe portion of the upper when the shoe is inverted from contacting with the heel supporting rods at the rear of the rest. This construction, together with the provision previously explained for preventing the toe of the shoe from contacting readily with the member 6, obviates any tendency to scratch or soil this portion of the shoe through contact with the rack. The members 16 and 18 are preferably cylindrical, or provided with curved upper surfaces, and this construction, in view of the fact that the rods are spaced apart, effectively prevents the accumulation upon the rack of tacks or waste which might scratch or soil the upper or the shoe bottom. The members 6 and 8, as previously noted, are suitably spaced to receive the heel of the upright shoe, and the member 8 through contact with the heel serves conveniently as means to limit forward movement of the shoe and thereby prevent the shoe from slipping ofl the rack, while the member 6 serves to limit movement of the shoe in the opposite direction. The rack also includes means for limiting lateral movement of the shoes, especially when the latter are in upright position, this means comprising partitions 20 secured to the members 6 and 8 and extending upward sufliciently to limit lateral sliding of the shoes upon the rack and also to assist in preventing the shoes from tipping upon the rack far enough to contact with one another. The members 6 and 8 in combination with the partitions 20 provide compartments for receiving the heels of the shoes when the latter are placed in upright position, whereby movement of the heel upon the support is limited in all directions.

In Fig. 3 is shown a modified form of heel positioning means in which the rods 18 are spaced below the upper surface of the rods 16, this construction being intended particularly for use with ladies shoes which are formed with high heels such as indicated at 22. In view of the narrow form of such a heel this construction provides a more stable support for the shoe, since the members 16 serve to limit and restrict lateral movement of the heel and thereby keep the shoes effectively spaced apart and prevent the heel from assuming such positions that the edge of the narrow top lift may tip readily into the spaces between adjacent rods and thereby cause a tipping of the shoe. The lowering of the rods 18 is also an additional precaution to prevent the toe of the shoe when in inverted position from contacting with the heel support, and this construction may be used in the case of shoes of the character referred to without danger that the shank of the shoe may contact with the upper surface of the rest member 8.

It will be evident from the above description that this invention provides a rack which is ready at all times without change or adjustment of its parts to receive shoes in either upright or inverted position, and that the shoe in either position may be placed in substantially the same location on the rack so that the same number of shoes may be supported on the rack whether upright or inverted. The same shoes may thus be transported upon the rack to difierent parts of the factory until all the operations thereon have been completed.

It will be clear from an inspection of Fig. 2 that the upright shoe may be placed in substantially the same longitudinal position, that is, the same position widthwise of the shelf or rack member, that it occupies when inverted, although reversed end for end. Practically no additional width or depth of rack, therefore, is required by reason of the provision for supporting the shoes in either upright or inverted position. The shelves also may be located as near together as the height of the upper will permit, thereby effecting a further economy of space. The skeleton construction of the shoe supports, including the members 6 and 8, the dowels, and the partitions 20, it will be evident, obviates practically all tendency to the accu mulation of tacks and other waste matter which is a. frequent cause of loss through the scratching and soiling of the shoes upon the racks.

Although I have disclosed the invention as embodied in a rack having the particular features of construction above set forth, it will be understood that the invention is not thus restricted in its application and that various specific embodiments are comprehended within the spirit and scope of the claims.

Having described the invention, what I claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent of the United States is the follow- 1ng:

1. A device of the class described comprising, in combination, a rest for supporting the forepart of an inverted shoe, means at one side of said rest for supporting the rear portion of the inverted shoe, said means being constructed to support the forepart of the shoe bottom when the shoe is placed in upright position in substantially the same location on the device, and means at the other side of said rest for supporting the heel of the shoe in said upright position.

2. A device of the class described comprising, in combination, a member providing a rest for supporting the forepart of an inverted shoe, means at one side of said member for supporting the rear portion of the inverted shoe, said means being constructed to support the forepart of the shoe prising, in combination, a rest for support-- ing the forepart of an inverted shoe, means at one side of said rest for supporting the rear portion of the inverted shoe, said means being constructed to support the forepart of the shoe bottom when the shoe is placed in upright position in substantially the same location on the device, means at the other side of said rest for supporting the heel of the shoe when the shoe is placed in said upright position, and means for limiting movement of the heel of the shoe in all directions upon its supporting means.

4. A device of the class described comprising, in combination, a rest for supporting the forepart of an inverted shoe, supports having portions extending from one side of said rest in position to support either the rear portion of the inverted shoe or the forepart of the shoe bottom when the shoe 7 is placed in upright position in substantially the same location on the device, said supports having also portions extending from the other side of said rest for laterally posi tioning the heel of the shoe when the shoe is placed in said upright position, means at said other side of the rest for supporting the heel of the shoe, and means for limiting endwise movement of the shoe.

5. A shoe rack comprising, in combina tion, a member extending longitudinally of the rack at the rear thereof, another similar member spaced forwardly from said first member and arranged to provide a rest for the foreparts of inverted shoes, pairs of spaced converging rods extending from said first member through said other member and projecting forwardly therefrom for supporting the rear portions of the inverted shoes or the foreparts of the shoes when the 1 shoes are placed in upright position, and additional rods extending from one of said members to the other and located between the rods of each of said pairs for supporting the heels of the upright shoes.

(3. A shoe rack having, in combination, supporting means for a plurality of shoes constructed and arranged to support the respective shoes in either upright or inverted position in substantially the same longitudinal positions on the rack, the supporting means for each shoe comprising rods suitably spaced from one another and from the rods of adjacent shoe supports to prevent the accumulation of waste matter thereon, and means for limiting lateral movement of the upright shoes in both directions upon their respective supporting means.

7. A shoe rack having, in combination, means for supporting a shoe either sole upward or sole downward in substantially the same location on the rack, including means arranged to contact with the breast of the heel to limit forward movement of the shoe when the shoe is supported with its sole downward.

8. A shoe rack having, in combination, a pair of substantially parallel bars suitably spaced to receive between them heels of upright shoes, a plurality of pairs of shoe supporting members projecting from one of said bars, each of said pairs being arranged to support the sole of an upright shoe or the rear portion of the shoe in inverted position, and means between said bars for supporting the heels of the upright shoes, said parts being constructed. and arranged to support the shoes in either upright or inverted position in substantially the'same locations on the rack.

In testimony whereof I have signed my name to this specification in the presence of two subscribing witnesses.

CLARENCE H. YOUNG, JOHN G. SUTHERLAND.

Copies of this patent may be obtained for five cents each, by addressing the Commissioner of Patents, Washington, D. C. 

